Seven weeks ago, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted at the possibility of the end of Quantitative Easing (QE). Market’s freaked out, as markets are wont to do. We said at the time that this was an intentional intimation, and that in fact, it was a tool of the Fed Chair, as important as the

This week, the Federal Reserve continued its strategy of giving very advanced warning that its extraordinary easy policy will eventually be wound down, as we discussed in our “Market Message” on May 31, “The Worm Has Turned.” This is fundamentally good news. It affirms the Fed’s awareness of the need to stop bond buying, and

There is no more important issue facing our economy, indeed the world’s economies, and the future performance of the markets than the reversal in Fed policy that will happen over the next several years. The stakes couldn’t be higher. Do too much, put us into contraction. Do too little, create inflation. For now, the duty

A few days ago, Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke took what I believe to be the first step in ending Quantitative Easing (the massive money creation / bond buying program dating to the depths of the Financial Crisis). Chairman Bernanke’s seemingly subtle mention that the Fed will stop easing if the economy continues on its current

The big news this week (well, other than that phone thing) was the Fed’s announcement that they would continue purchasing mortgage-backed securities in an effort to continue stimulating the economy. QE3 is here. Markets liked the news, up almost 2% since the announcement. The public reaction, though, has been another story. If you look at

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note validates the thesis that the economy is stealthily improving, the market’s rally is justified, and expectations have been too low. Higher yields this week are attributable to Bernanke’s comments and the continued flow of improved economic measures. Investors in Treasuries are selling them in deference to the expectation

With volatility up and investors looking for any kind of perspective, what should you make of the stock market of late? Is this the start of the next Bear Market (and thus the end of the 2.5 year old Bull Market)? Or is it something else. If you look at the other Bear Markets of